Since gaining approval to pilot exchange-traded asset-backed securities (ABS) and real estate investment trust (REIT) businesses at the end of 2023, insurance asset management companies have been steadily advancing related operations. As one of the first five insurance asset managers to participate in the pilot program, PICC Assets has actively explored the sector in recent years, achieving notable results. By the end of 2025, PICC Assets had successfully issued four exchange-traded ABS products in the role of manager, with a cumulative issuance volume exceeding 10 billion yuan, reaching 11.466 billion yuan, ranking among the top performers of the five insurance asset managers. Recently, PICC Assets detailed the progress and insights from its participation in the pilot program in an interview.
Focusing on Holding-Type Real Estate ABS In 2025, among the four asset securitization products that PICC Assets applied for, received approval for, and successfully issued as manager, the issuers were all large central enterprises, with two of the products being holding-type real estate ABS. The "Guangming Expressway Holding-Type Real Estate Asset-Backed Special Plan," managed by PICC Assets, was the first holding-type real estate ABS with an insurance asset manager as plan manager, as well as the market's first equity-type holding-type real estate ABS for expressways. The issuance scale of this project was 2.53 billion yuan, with PICC system funds acting as cornerstone investors, attracting diverse institutional investors including insurance companies, banks, and trusts. The "PICC Assets - China Railway Nord Holding-Type Real Estate Asset-Backed Special Plan," established in September last year, was the market's first commercial office property holding-type real estate ABS managed by an insurance asset manager.
PICC Assets stated that regulatory authorities are promoting the development of a multi-tiered REITs market, and China's REITs market has achieved significant results during the pilot exploration phase. Among these, holding-type real estate ABS, as an innovation strongly guided and encouraged, has rapidly expanded, transitioning from a "pilot" at the end of 2023 to "regular" application and issuance by 2025, with the equity attributes and standardization of the products continuously strengthening. PICC Assets indicated that 2025 saw explosive growth in holding-type real estate ABS. Furthermore, improvements in diversification were observed from the perspectives of issuers, managers, and investors, reflecting broad acceptance and consensus among major market participants. Holding-type real estate ABS has now established significant market influence, complementing the public REITs market and becoming an important component of the multi-tiered REITs market.
PICC Assets expects that in the coming years, driven by policies aimed at revitalizing existing assets, central enterprises and high-quality local state-owned enterprises will still have substantial motivation to revitalize equity-type existing assets. Using equity-type ABS as an effective tool for revitalizing existing assets to promote high-quality development still holds promising growth potential.
Seeking Quality Assets Based on Allocation Standards In exchange-traded ABS business, insurance asset managers are actively leveraging their unique characteristics to highlight differentiated advantages. PICC Assets noted that because insurance asset managers serve both as product managers and insurance asset allocators, they do not approach this business purely as an investment banking operation. Instead, they seek high-quality assets from quality issuers based on meeting the investment allocation standards of insurance funds. By controlling project companies through the plan's governance mechanisms, they can more fully participate in the operational safeguards of the underlying assets, effectively mitigating project risks.
From the company's perspective, due to the long-term nature and strict risk control characteristics of insurance funds, there is a natural emphasis on the long-term stability of cash flows and the maturity and robustness of operational safeguards when selecting assets that meet allocation standards. The ABS business conducted by insurance asset managers can synergize with other businesses within the insurance group system. Taking PICC Assets as an example, during the ABS business process, PICC Assets, as the plan manager, leads the entire process; insurance funds, as cornerstone investors, play a leading and demonstrative role; and property insurance can provide comprehensive insurance coverage for the underlying assets, enhancing the risk resilience of the underlying project's operations.
PICC Assets stated that in ABS business development, the company will firmly adhere to its "manager" role positioning, continue to deeply explore high-quality underlying assets, fully leverage the dual-drive effect of investment and investment banking, focus on holding-type real estate ABS and medium-to-long duration REITs, actively build a reserve of quality projects, and strive to make the REITs business a "new hallmark" for PICC Assets. Through innovative models, it aims to further play a supportive role in "revitalizing existing assets and expanding effective investment."